This Is Who I Am
by milk-choco-curry
Summary: Weiss has a past, and it just won't go away. It proves to be more harmful to her and her team than anyone first realizes.
1. Prologue

Prologue

"I'm sorry Daddy, I didn't mean it!"

"You really don't get it, do you? You're so impressionable, why don't you just leave and be with those…those _things_ instead? Stupid girl."

"But I wanna stay here! And I'm just saying…."

"SHUT UP!"

She went down with a thud. The young girl was hit in the face with a glass bottle, a beer bottle her angry father had been drinking out of. The bottle shattered on her face as she fell down, leaving lots of marks and cuts, but one stood out. One cut looked worse than all the others: the one going down her left eye.

"Ungrateful brat."

Her father stormed off, realizing he'd made his point. The young girl just laid there and cried as the slash on her face bled. She couldn't understand what was wrong with what she said or why her father felt like she deserved to be hurt for it. She was still far too young.

Regardless, it changed her. She grew cold and distant just to avoid the pain. She also knew she didn't want anyone else to feel this way. Like many, her life experiences became the catalyst for who she wanted to become. However, her memories, and therefore her actions and development as a whole person, are forever scarred for the same reasons.

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**A/N: Hello everyone! This is my first fanfiction piece on this site, or any site, for that matter. I haven't done something like this in a really long time (since I was 8? Does that even count?), and I'm trying to ease my way back in. Apologies if I don't show a lot of skill, I'm doing my best with limited time, particularly now with finals coming up (I'm a college freshman btw). I'll try my best to upload chapters on a regular basis.**

**All feedback (comments, criticisms, favorites, etc.) is appreciated, and thanks for reading! Chapter 1 is up, and Chapter 2 will hopefully be up soon. Hope you enjoy!**

**EDIT: Adding a disclaimer: RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum. All credit and love and praise and other mushy things goes to them.**


	2. Chapter 1: Snow Day

**A/N: Here's Chapter 1. Enjoy! Feedback and comments please! :)**

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Chapter 1: Snow Day

Weiss' gaze was seemingly transfixed on the window as she watched the snow fall and the frost form on the windowsill.

A snowstorm had hit Vale the other night, and Beacon was forced to shut down classes for the week since the campus was more or less snowed in. This didn't stop any of the other members of Team RWBY to find ways to enjoy their time off. Blake found a spot under a large tree on one end of campus and had resumed her normal reading regimen, while Yang and Ruby, being the children at heart that they were, were busy building snowmen, having snowball fights and making snow angels, among other things.

Weiss stayed inside. She decided instead to finish her written project on Applied Assault Theory, knowing that it was 15% of the total grade. As a Schnee, her priorities were straight: get the grades in class, perform well in battle, become the best Huntress she could. Well, that would be the way a Schnee would approach it, since she was the first one to train as a Huntress.

All that aside, she finished her project and just looked out the window.

The snow continued to fall, slowly and evenly as if on cue.

"Hm. Looks like home," she muttered after some time.

Just then, the door swing open and hit the wall with a loud thud, and that was all Weiss needed to know that the two psychotic bundles of who-knows-what returned from snow day.

"Best snow day EVER!" screamed Yang and Ruby in unison. They continued to laugh and recount their exploits while Weiss sat at her desk fuming that they couldn't enter like normal people.

"Seriously you two, it doesn't take that much effort to simply unlock the door and gently push it open, does it? You could've broken the door!" Weiss interrupted. "Oh, well _sorry_ Princess Schnee, didn't know that the commoners were actually allowed to have fun every once in a while. You should try it sometime, it feels good to have a life!"

Weiss' face turned scarlet red after hearing this. "I beg your pardon, Yang? What exactly are you saying?"

Before the two could have yet another shouting match, Ruby jumped in between the two. "Guys, guys, let's not do this now. C'mon, we have this sudden, awesome vacation, the least we could do is spend it however we want."

"Well, the princess can be a party pooper if she wants, fine by me. I'm gonna get ready for bed, I'm sleepy from all the fun," Yang teased. As she walked out, she gave a smirk back to Weiss, who huffed and looked away. Yang laughed and went to go change and freshen up before bed. Ruby, meanwhile, stayed at the room, looking at a tired Weiss who plopped into bed after a whole day's work on one stupid project.

"Weiss, how are you feeling? You look really tired," Ruby noted. Weiss sighed and put her hands over her face. "Tired doesn't even begin to describe it. I just did a whole project in one day. I've never done that much work at once before." Ruby beamed at Weiss' confession. "That's really impressive, you should feel proud of that! Nobody works as hard as you Weiss, I mean it. I think you should rest a little tomorrow, I don't think there's anything else you're supposed to do and classes are cancelled…you should do something that you like. Enjoy yourself a little."

Weiss turned her head to Ruby and gave her a glare. "Are you mocking me like Yang just did?" Ruby jerked back and stammered "No no no no no, I didn't mean it like that! I just…"

"I got your point, you dunce. Sheesh, calm down, why dontcha?" Weiss replied, her tone dripping with sarcasm. Ruby just took this as it was and the conversation ended there.

As Ruby pulled herself into bed, Yang and Blake entered the room, fully changed into their sleepwear and ready to call it a day.

"Blake, how was your day?" asked Ruby in earnest. None of them had seen Blake much that day, but they knew she was reading and could take care of herself.

"Fine, thanks. Caught up with some reading. Finished up a mystery romance novel I was reading-the one I told you about the other day?"

"Oh yeah, that! It sounded really good, can I borrow it from you?"

"Sure, as long as you return it in good condition."

Blake and Ruby smiled at each other. Their love for books really drew them closer together. Really, all of Team RWBY was very close, but Weiss felt a little more left out, something she mentally confirmed as she was listening to Ruby and Blake.

Weiss turned to the side, facing away from her teammates as she tried to adjust herself into the mattress. It's definitely not the kind of bed she had back home, but that wasn't her concern. She sighed quietly into the pillow and said to herself, "What's….what's wrong with me?"

"Lights out, everyone!"

Ruby had taken it upon herself as team leader to make sure everyone had a good night's rest. Weiss thought it a bit childish, but they ARE at a combat school, and regardless of whether they were in combat or in class, the rest was necessary.

"Goodnight, Yang!" "Nighty-night, baby sis!" "Ugh….goodnight, Blake!" "Goodnight, Ruby." "Goodnight Weiss!" A moment passed. Ruby leaned over down to Weiss' bunk. "….Weiss?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry. Goodnight, Ruby." With that, Weiss covered her head with the bed sheets.

Ruby felt that something was going on, but didn't know what to make of it. She reasoned that Weiss was tired and moody (again) from the project. She turned out the light, and fell straight asleep, along with Yang and Blake.

Weiss, however, was crying softly as she buried her head into her pillow. Nobody needed to hear her, the proud and noble Schnee heiress, 'turn soft', as her father would say. It was better this way.


	3. Chapter 2: Late-Night Resolve

Chapter 2: Late-Night Resolve

After she stopped crying, Weiss remained in her position, facing the wall on her side of the room. She figured stifling the emotion was no good; it would end up coming out some other way, probably one that would make her even more upset. She had to let it out some way, but she couldn't do it here. She waited and waited for what seemed like an eternity (it was actually about twenty minutes) before making her move.

Slowly, she rose out of bed, wiping the tear stains off her face with the sleeve of her nightgown. She checked the clock for the time. 12:37 AM. 'Fair enough, plenty of time before the morning.' She looked around to make sure everyone was asleep. Blake, the first in her view, looked sound asleep. The faint snore from above Blake told Weiss that Yang was out cold. Last, Weiss looked up at Ruby.

Inside the little blanket and rope fortress, Weiss saw Ruby in her black top and rose-covered sweats, curled up and breathing softly, wearing a faint smile. 'She looks so peaceful', Weiss said to herself. She almost wanted to watch over her, make sure she had a good night's rest, but the notion quickly disappeared. There was another pressing matter on Weiss' mind: she wasn't sure whether or not she was going to let Ruby and the others know where she was going. She really didn't know what she was going to be doing or where she was going, but she had to leave. Weiss wasn't used to 'winging it', but she had no choice.

'Well, I probably won't be out for that long, but I'll dress for it just in case.'

She quietly changed from her nightgown to her standard combat gear, complete with Myrtenaster, again as a precaution. As she approached the door, she looked back at the beds and all of her sleeping teammates, completely unaware of the storm brewing in Weiss' head. Weiss smiled. There lied her best friends, a few of the only friends she had. They meant everything to her, regardless of how annoying they were at times. This was about as close of a family as Weiss had, and her face contorted slightly into a pained expression thinking about how much of a jerk she was to all of them. She never meant it that way, she was just not used to being around other people, so everyone's differences made little sense to her initially. But that can't change how she acted and how she was and probably always will be perceived as: a stuck-up, ice-cold rich girl.

It was the truth, and it hurt. It hurt like hell.

Weiss finally turned away and opened the door, holding back a tear. She whispered a faint "I'm sorry" and closed the door behind her quietly. Nobody heard her as she walked down the hall to who knows where, the heels of her boots making the only sounds in the night. She had to try to fix herself. She was going to fix herself. For her teammates, her friends, and for her own sake.

* * *

12:53 AM. Ruby had rolled a little bit to her right in her sleep, which left one of her arms dangling off the side. Ruby still slept peacefully, thinking happy dreams, happy times, happy places…happy things. In her excitement, she rolled again.

THUD!

"Ugh…ow, what the heck?" Ruby rubbed the back of her head, slightly dazed from the impact and annoyed by the interruption of her awesome dreams. The noise from said impact startled Blake and she nearly launched out of bed, arms in defensive martial arts positions, and scanning the room rapidly. Ruby stared with almost childlike wonder and confusion, but Blake calmed down quickly. The Faunus girl saw the disheveled Ruby and gave a sigh, as she realized what the noise was from. "Ruby are you okay? What happened?"

"Guess I fell off the bed", Ruby said with a tired laugh. "Sorry about that." "Don't worry about it, go back to…"

Blake's voice trailed off when she looked up from the floor to Ruby and Weiss' bunk, which was missing a certain white-haired teammate.

"Blake, what's wrong?" Ruby asked, her face puzzled. "Where'd she go?" Blake said, a hint of concern clearly audible as she pointed to Weiss' bunk. Ruby stood up and turned around. She finally noticed Weiss' empty bed, the covers pulled back and somewhat wrinkled. Ruby turned back to Blake, a reassuring smile on her face. "She's probably studying late again, she kinda does that every now and then. She could use more sleep, but it's probably nothing to worry about." Blake still showed concern as she got out of bed. "I don't think she's studying, or if she did, she didn't plan to. Her bed's a wreck if I'm referring to her standards of upkeep." Ruby absorbed Blake's words and developed some concern, not for the mention on the condition of Weiss' beds, but for the lack of planning. 'There's no way Weiss wouldn't plan or think something out…what's going on?' Ruby's short train of thought was broken by Blake making another observation. "Myrtenaster is gone." That sealed it for Ruby. Something was definitely wrong, and as leader, it was her duty to figure out what was eating at Weiss.

Ruby rushed for the door, forgetting she was still in her pajamas. "I'm going to go find her. If I don't come back in two hours, get Yang and look for both of us." Before Blake could protest, Ruby had darted out.

* * *

Weiss took a deep breath and walked towards the open balcony. Her late-night meandering through the school had led her here. Here was where she would finally end the war in her mind on who she was and who she had to be and what she could be. With the moon as broken as she is as her witness, she would fix herself, right here and right now.

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**A/N:**** Next chapter's up! Ugh, I've been meaning to write it sooner, but I had finals last week, and now I'm home...and I'm recovering from finals...and been in sort of a mental slump. I pulled this off in about 2 hours of solid work, so hopefully you all enjoyed it. Again, all feedback (comments, favorites, etc.) is appreciated and hopefully I'll have the next chapter up in the next few days. Happy Holidays everyone!**


	4. Chapter 3: Melody of Memories

Chapter 3: Melody of Memories

Weiss looked out over the balcony and took in her surroundings. There was a light breeze and the front courtyard of the Academy was covered in a sizeable blanket of snow. It had stopped snowing sometime before Weiss came out onto the balcony, creating an atmosphere of bleak stillness and an image of hopelessness. At least that's how Weiss saw it.

She still didn't know what she was going to do. 'Fixing' what was wrong with herself is about as vague of a start as one could get; what was she supposed to fix and how was she going to do it? She really had no clue where to start figuring herself out. So, after some thought, she decided to sing. Singing did two things for Weiss; it helped her cope with the trauma she was facing at the present moment, but it also made her remember the sadness of her past. She loved sad songs, and their lyrics were what made Weiss remember. Singing was a bittersweet gift to her, but here it would be put to good use.

"There's only one song I can even sing that can make me remember that far back…" Weiss hesitated, and then cleared her throat quietly. "At least nobody's hearing me…"

**"Mirror, tell me something. Tell me who's the loneliest of all?"**

The memories all came rushing back. The yelling, the hurtful words, the tears, but mostly the pain. Weiss continued to sing anyway. She was sick of her crying fits at night when nobody could hear her, like what forced her here tonight. She was sick of the feelings she held inside of herself. She needed an answer.

**"Mirror, tell me something. Tell me who's the loneliest of all?"**

She remembered herself when she was around five years old, a small girl whose knowledge of the world was smaller than herself. She lived about as happily as a girl could have been. She had lots of friends and always found a way to have fun and make people smile around her. Her family may not have been around much, but she still enjoyed herself. She'd always dreamed of being something like a 'warrior princess', someone who would be able to fight off bad monsters and save her people. It seemed that easy to her, really. She'd find out that the real world wasn't the same as a fairy tale.

**"Mirror, locked inside me, tell me can a heart be turned to stone?"**

Once the war between the Schnee Dust Company and the Faunus began, her family became far more disciplinarian than they were before, removing Weiss from any nonprofessional interactions with anyone at a young age. Part of that move was so she couldn't be an easy target for the Faunus, as many others have been at that time, but the main reason was to train her to become 'the ideal Schnee', in her family's eyes: strong-willed, intelligent, logical, thorough, and decisive. In other words, Weiss Schnee would become a leader among many, performing everything with flawless perfection and diligence, the kind of person worthy of running the Schnee Dust Company. She was still five, but she was immediately thrust into the realities of the world and of her family name.

Weiss continued to sing, a melodious series of vocal notes escaping her lips in the dead of night with the wind carrying it as far as it would go. The varying pitch and tone of her voice was the singing equivalent of the 'ideal Schnee'; flawless in every way.

**"Mirror mirror, what's behind you? Save me from the things I see. **

** I can keep it from the world, why won't you let me hide from me?"**

She remembered the brutal lessons, the business training, all the combat practice, and her family's ideas all forced into her mercilessly. Very soon, the once bubbly and happy girl became a kind of walking corpse, cold and calculating, the very life drained from her being, as she shuffled from task to task without much rest or a second thought. Her wonder and questions had ceased to escape her lips after numerous fights with her family, including one she'd never forget…

For the longest time she believed it was the Faunus' fault for what had happened to her life, but after her dispute with Blake, she figured it was more the Schnee mentality than anything else. She would've gotten this kind of life without the war anyways…right?

Regardless, she was fully convinced that something was very off about herself, never mind the fact that her family life affected her growth as a person. She felt that it was HER fault she was an outcast, someone who couldn't get along with many people, try as she might. She felt like her own team at best tolerated her because they had to, though in reality that couldn't be further from the truth. But Weiss wasn't thinking that way. She was a problem to others, to everyone she was around. Her family thought her as an heiress, not a person. She learned to be callous to all but herself and only defended her family's name staunchly because doing so would make her look better and maybe give her some respect, something she sorely wanted not for the sake of having it, but so she could feel appreciated for once. She never got that.

Her real life had to be a secret, otherwise her life and her family's lives would suffer from the wrath of the royalty of Remnant, the consumers of Schnee Dust, and the ever-watching public eye. The last thing she needed was her family's life to suffer.

Holding back tears, she continued on singing, slowly losing her handle on that famed ice-cold Schnee composure she would exhibit so well.

**"Mirror mirror, tell me something: Who's the loneliest of all?"**

In her mind, it was her. In her mind, she was a problem in the lives of so many. In her mind, her life itself was a mistake.

The last words of her song came out in a muffled, yet audible whisper:

**"I'm the loneliest of all…"**

And with that, the strong-willed and flawless heiress of the Schnee Dust Company lowered her head, broke down and wept silently on the balcony as the wind of the night whipped by her, a scene that could torment any healthy soul.

And unbeknownst to said heiress, someone was watching. Someone holding back her own tears as she looked on, wearing only a black top and white sweats, the latter of which were adorned in red roses.

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**A/N:**** So I brought the feels this chapter. Be warned I will continue to do so. This took me a while, and to a point it could be considered more of a rant than a story, but this was the best I could do to capture Weiss' childhood. That element of somber finality was helped by the song (I basically transcribed 'Mirror Mirror' by Jeff and Casey Lee Williams, the song Weiss sang in her trailer) and the environment Weiss is in almost as much as the context itself. **

**As always, any and all feedback is appreciated, and I'll try to get these chapters written on a more consistent time frame. Plus, a lot of you guys on the RWBY fanfics are really, really good! I'm very jealous of so many of you guys' work and will start to follow/fav some of you other guys. This is a strong community after only one season, let's keep this going! Happy Holidays!**


	5. Chapter 4: Shattered Soul

Chapter 4: Shattered Soul

Ruby wasn't sure what to think as she slowly approached Weiss. Her thoughts were just one big jumble of feelings. On one end, she was awestruck and amazed by Weiss' singing ability. She'd never known Weiss could sing, let alone never hearing her. More importantly though, Ruby was extremely concerned for Weiss. Ruby heard the lyrics, and she wasn't oblivious to what it meant or what that song said about Weiss. She was hurting, and Ruby had already obliged herself to maintain and improve the well-being of her team. She wasn't sure what Weiss was going to say or do, but Ruby had no choice but to find out directly. Ruby just hoped Weiss wouldn't yell at her this time…

* * *

Blake just sat on her bed. She tried to go back to sleep, but all she could do was worry. She spent the time thinking furiously about the teammates who weren't in their room with her and the snoring blonde above. Blake wondered about Weiss. She knew Weiss was a big girl and could take care of herself, but the possibility of Weiss having some kind of mental malady that ailed her seemed all but certain, and if it was, it was beyond what she could do on her own. So how did it begin, Blake thought. The fight between Weiss and her was her first thought. The two had somewhat opened themselves up to make arguments concerning each other's feelings about the Faunus. Blake remembered the words Weiss hissed at her about her life and ran through all of them until she got to the part where

_"…and every day, my father would come home furious, and that made for a very difficult childhood!"_

Blake snapped out of her train of thought in her realization.

"Her family!" she loudly blurted out. She covered her mouth quickly, hoping she didn't wake Yang, but somehow she slept thought that. Blake sighed in relief as she uncovered her mouth and got out of bed. She stared at the clock near their door. 1:34 AM. "Hasn't been two hours yet. C'mon Ruby, get back here!" Blake was having difficulty controlling her emotions, strange since she was by far the coolest-headed of the four. She just didn't want to lose more people she cared about. She herself didn't want to remember those days.

Meanwhile, Yang was still soundly asleep, utterly unaware of the turmoil her three teammates were going through.

* * *

"Um…Weiss?"

Ruby was nervous and shaking when she first made contact with her partner on the balcony. Weiss didn't look at her. "Ruby. What are you doing here?" she asked flatly, attempting to veil her mixed emotions of what were mainly shock and dismay. Ruby just took this as Weiss being Weiss, with her icy façade and her impossible attitude. She couldn't hold her concern any longer. It spilled out in anger.

"Weiss, what the hell are YOU doing here? That's the real question here! What's the point of moping like this? What about all that 'come to your teammates' stuff you said to Blake that one time before? Does that not apply to you? What makes you so damn special, huh?"

Weiss kept her face frozen in the same look it was before, but she really felt bad inside. Ruby had never cursed at her, and she was doing it out of concern. Ruby kept speaking.

"Weiss, it's okay for you to come to us. We want to help you, you know. You don't have to cry anymo-"

Weiss covered Ruby's mouth and gave her a death glare. "How did you know that?" she asked with equal parts anger and panic. Ruby removed the hand over her mouth and held it with both of hers. "Weiss, I bunk right above you, and I study late at night. Don't think that I can't hear you from up there." Ruby paused for a moment to wipe a tear from her face, as Weiss wordlessly looked on. Ruby's composure was failing and they both knew it. "I…I can never say anything to you, because I don't want you to yell at me. I always…feel really, really guilty…for just…for just not doing anything to help…what I'm trying to say is…I care, okay? Please Weiss…" and Ruby just broke down. She collapsed in Weiss' arms and cried, and all Weiss could do was hold her and stroke her hair. She didn't dare say anything that could set Ruby off until she calmed down. Eventually, she did calm down. Weiss mustered the most soothing voice she could as she stroked Ruby's hair and gave Ruby something she was never looking for.

"Ruby, I…I'm jealous of you, you know."

Ruby's head snapped up from Weiss' collarbone and looked straight into Weiss' eyes with a quizzical look. What was going on? Was Weiss going crazy?

"Ruby, you…you just remind me of…I guess…what I could've been. If my life wasn't the way it was, y'know? If I was raised differently, maybe I wouldn't…be like this, I guess."

Weiss let go of Ruby and turned around, her back facing Team RWBY's leader. She needed another moment to herself. She had said too much, and it was all too much for her at that point. Ruby remained silent, still trying to ponder the statement Weiss had said. Was it true? Was the impossibly proud and vastly powerful heiress Weiss Schnee…_jealous of her?_ Before she could really understand it all, Weiss started to walk away from Ruby and towards the door. Ruby was having none of it.

"Weiss, just where do you think you're going?" Ruby asked in a very annoyed tone. Hopefully Weiss would snap out of her trance and start yelling at Ruby to not speak to her in that tone. Anything sounded better than the sad and hurt Weiss that showed herself tonight.

"I'm gonna be out for a bit. I'll be back in the morning." And with that Weiss just left without so much as a protest from a stunned Ruby. Ruby stood there on the open balcony for what seemed like ages, staring at the door that Weiss had left her from. The wind picked up again and the snow began to reemerge from the sky as each flake descended softly towards the ground beneath her. Ruby sank to her knees as the bad weather whipped around her, sullenly thinking about her teammate.

"Oh, Weiss…where are you even gonna go?" Ruby was fighting tears again and her head just sunk down. She felt so helpless. Another person she had sworn to herself to protect was broken and she couldn't do anything. All she could do was tie Weiss together with someone else. Someone who Ruby could never forget in any way. And Ruby just feared the worst.

* * *

Weiss kept walking, thinking to herself. How was she going to prove herself worthy of the Schnee name, of perfection, of her teammates, her friends? She really didn't know, even after all this. She just smiled thinking about her partners. She really loved them dearly, even though she never showed it. Amidst the snow and wind, she turned back towards Beacon.

"I'll make it up to you guys, I promise." And with that, she kept walking towards the forest of Forever Fall.

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**A/N: I'm back, finally. Holiday time with the family, you know how that is, so sorry for this coming so late. This story (and every other story I will write) will be updated on Tuesdays starting next week, for consistency. I may have a potential RWBY one-shot up tomorrow...**

**It kinda scares me how much I made Weiss sink here, but the feels must continue! I'm an evil person.**

**Plus, I have a deviantArt account! Actually, I've had it for a bit, it's just been inactive until the past few days. Couple photos is all that's up now. Hopefully that changes soon.**

**And as always, all feedback is appreciated. People who have given me feedback, I will reply to you guys, I'm sorry I haven't done that before, and I'm gonna to a better job of doing that. Until next time, everyone!**


	6. Chapter 5: Thoughts and Revelations

Chapter 5: Thoughts and Revelations

Blake had gone back to sleep. The waiting game just wasn't working for her. All night long, she had troubled herself with the thoughts of Weiss in pain and Ruby possibly going missing trying to find her, and the stress sapped her of whatever energy she had remaining late at night. So she fell back asleep, hoping she could at least drown out her fears with rest, if that was possible. So far, she really wasn't thinking about her teammates, which calmed her down a bit, and she was sleeping in peace.

The door creaked open. A sullen, teary-eyed Ruby shuffled in, being careful not to wake anyone, but secretly hoping that someone did hear her. Neither Blake nor Yang did hear her, as both continued to sleep. Ruby felt like waking them to go find Weiss, or to at least figure out an approach to find her. But they were out cold, and there could be a repercussion waking them up. Ruby pondered it for a minute or two, heavily weighing both options in her mind. She didn't have time. Ruby eventually went with her gut instinct: wake them up.

"Blake. Blake? Hey, wake up" Ruby whispered into Blake's ear while softly nudging her. Blake slowly opened her amber eyes, reddened by the emotions of the night.

"R…Ru...by? Is that you?" she slowly asked. Ruby nodded. "Yes, yes it's me. Are you-uff!" Blake quickly embraced Ruby. "I was really worried about you" said the Faunus in a muffled tone as she buried her head into Ruby's collar. Ruby tried to assuage Blake from her fear, but she was still thinking about Weiss. Ruby's worry just made her break down and cry as she was holding Blake. The Faunus definitely noticed and remembered her missing teammate as she let go of a crying Ruby, who promptly collapsed on the floor.

"Did you know Weiss could sing?" were the first words out of Ruby's mouth, sobbing the whole way through. "So you… did find Weiss?" Blake asked in what she felt was the only way she could. The question couldn't be dodged. Ruby nodded her head as she composed herself. "She sang something about being lonely or something and…it was just beautiful and sad at the same time. More sad, actually."

"Well, what else happened? Why isn't she here?" "I…she didn't give me a reason. She took off and I didn't do anything. I didn't…" Ruby fell quiet for a moment and stared at the ground. Blake had remembered her train of thought prior to her falling asleep. Weiss' past was behind this. "What happened exactly? Did she say anything to you? You at least talked to her, right?" Ruby looked up. "I yelled at her, and I shouldn't have. But after that, she said she was jealous of me. Jealous of my life or something, but she said she was jealous of me." The room fell silent for some time. The Faunus was the first to speak.

"I see. It makes sense now. Actually, I should've seen this coming."

Ruby looked at Blake with a puzzled look? "Um. What?"

"You know Weiss is the heiress of Schnee Dust, right? Well, based on what I've always known about them, they're a meticulous and perfectionistic bunch, all tightly wound and based their actions on status, money, and power. Weiss fit those pretty well when we all first met." Blake turned her head from Ruby to the window, the broken moon being the only visible object in the sky. "Looks more like a façade now. She said she was jealous of you, Ruby. That's because she couldn't have what you had. Hell, I think I may have gotten more of what she never had."

Ruby got up and walked to the window. She looked out at the open and empty expanse of snow that blanketed the ground. "So what do we have that she doesn't? She has everything…doesn't she?" the young leader implied, turning back to Blake. Blake's next words delivered with a calm and directed approach, as if Blake knew all along, but Ruby was shocked by what was said:

"Weiss doesn't have people who care about her. She's never been able to develop any sort of kinship with anyone. Her family would've been the first good start, but they all must've shut her off. Since she couldn't win them over with affection or care, Weiss figured it must've been for everyone's best interests to emulate her family and their ideals, so she can win favor from them and everyone else. She tried to be perfect to her family so she could be loved. And I will admit that I nor my brethren didn't help that matter, what with all the White Fang did to her family and company, the only things that Weiss could even try to latch onto. So she must've built that wall, that façade of Schnee pride, around her heart so she wouldn't be shut off again." Blake sighed. "Seventeen years of damage really took its toll on her." Ruby had no clue what to say. She couldn't imagine anyone not being loved as a child, particularly someone of Weiss' family status. "So she's not stuck-up, then?" she asked Blake. "Well…she still is, but I really don't blame her." Ruby again looked out the window, and suddenly the tone of her voice changed.

"I'm finding her now."

Blake's eyes went wide. "Oh come on, not again! What's with you and your sudden impulses?" Ruby shot her an angry glance. "Not by myself! Wake up Yang, we're all going. We need to find her and show her that we care about her." _'Fine, but good luck with that'_ Blake muttered.

* * *

Weiss was still walking somewhere within Forever Fall and had made her way into an open clearing in the forest. _'Probably a good place to think.'_ She sat on a nearby tree stump and her mind went racing with what to do. How was she going to approach her teammates about her problems? "They're not exactly the listening type. Well, two of them, anyway." Weiss said out loud, her words only heard by the expanse of night.

Suddenly, Weiss had a thought. She stood up, head bowed, with an angry glare in her eyes. "Stupid Weiss, there's only one thing you _can_ do: get over your stupid pride and say something. They all probably think I'm crazy. Ugh, I don't blame them, but wow…this whole thing is just so stupid. Why cry over the past, why even _live_ in it?!...what the hell am I saying? Damn, this'll be a lot harder than I thought…stupid pride…" And with that, Weiss swung Myrtenaster and chopped down a tree in a fit of anger. The sound of the felled tree was followed by howling, and from multiple locations. Weiss turned around into the clearing and saw what looked to be a pack of Beowolves, no less than fifteen of them, approaching her and snarling ravenously at the person who woke them from their slumber.

"Damnit…"

* * *

**A/N:**** Finally done. Sheesh, this chapter was a doozy to write, only because I just came back to school and now have to readjust to new classes, different schedule, and sports starting back up (so outta shape). Currently in the works for new one-shots and action pieces (they sound good in my head, at least). **

**And hey, RWBY won the Best Animated Seires award from the IAWTV Awards! Pretty schweet. As always, feedback appreciated and thanks for reading! See you all next time!**


	7. Chapter 6: Search Party

**A/N:**** I've been really busy lately, so this came later than I wanted it to. Plus it's a little shorter than the other chapters. But I think it came out okay despite all that. As always, feedback is appreciated, and enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 6: Search Party

"That princess has some damn nerve, doesn't she?" Yang angrily commented as she shivered in the cold. "What a prissy brat, always whining over everything-" "Yang. Shut up", her sister countered, an angry glare coming from her eyes. "Ruby, don't tell me you're actually _defending_ her, are you? _She's_ the one who just sprinted off into the night because she has issues. She's not normal." Ruby was visibly more upset with Yang's last statement, and Blake stepped in between the two. "Yang, first of all, there is no such thing as 'normal'. It's too arbitrary to have a solid example or definition. More to the problem at hand, Weiss does have issues, yes, but those aren't her fault. I can't exactly say her childhood was a happy one…" she trailed off. Blake lowered her head and reminisced shortly about how her involvement with the White Fang hurt Weiss, but she snapped out of it shortly and raised her head to the sisters. "If there's anything I learned being with the White Fang, it's that the past can't be changed, but we can make the future a better place for ourselves and others. Let's find Weiss and make sure she has a chance to do that." Blake started walking away from the two, who really had no choice but to follow and hope that Blake knew what she was doing.

* * *

Weiss was breathing heavily. There were far more Beowolves than she had calculated and her Aura was beginning to dwindle. She was moving, defending herself from each swing or pounce the Grimm could attempt. Using the Dust was her last resort as she kept matching moves with the creatures coming after her. She gave herself some distance to catch her breath as the now thirty or so Beowolves circled around her and waited.

"None…of...this…is working."

The Beowolves charged, red eyes glimmering with the intent to kill. Weiss had one last idea. If it worked, she had a chance. If it didn't, there wouldn't be much left of her, and she knew that. She wasn't frightened by the prospect. She was attending Beacon Academy as a Huntress-in-Training, a place for the very best. She smiled softly as she waited for the right time to make her move.

The seemingly broken and dispirited Weiss Schnee regained her confidence, if only for a moment.

* * *

"Blake, are you sure?" Ruby looked on at the mouth of the Forest of Forever Fall. "There's no way Weiss would go here in the middle of the night…right?" Blake kept looking on. "It's more of a gut call than anything, really. But somehow I think she's here." Yang muttered something incoherently behind them, likely about how she was sleepy or mad at Weiss, but the other two paid no heed. Ruby turned her head to Blake. "Plan?" "Isn't that your job, leader?" said the Faunus with a smirk. Ruby looked back into the mouth of the forest, the darkness of the insides of the forest making her squirm with concern for Weiss.

"We're all going together. It's too dark for any of us to do it by ourselves safely. Plus, we should all be there when we find Weiss." Ruby didn't speak with much confidence, but the point was made. "Blake, if you can pick up any sounds that could lead us to Weiss, alert us and we'll follow. Okay?" Blake nodded. "Let's go." The trio walked into the forest, with Ruby hoping and praying internally that Weiss would be okay.

* * *

Weiss counted under her breath as the Grimm closed in.

"Three…"

When they were about fifteen meters away, they all picked up speed, closing in for the first strike.

"Two…"

Regardless of how her maneuver turned out, she would deplete most of her remaining Aura, rendering her defenseless after completion, making her an easy target.

"One…"

She inhaled and exhaled very slowly, preparing herself for what could be her final encounter, with no fear in her heart and no regret as to what she would do.

"Now."

She made her move. There was no turning back now.


	8. Chapter 7: One More Chance

**A/N: Took me long enough to write this one chapter. My sport is starting to pick up and I've got midterms coming up. I'll do my best to keep updating. This story will wrap up soon. Feedback appreciated.**

* * *

Chapter 7: One More Chance

Piercing howls echoed throughout the forest as their seemingly weakened target suddenly disappeared before them in a blur. They looked around for her for a brief moment.

Then a maelstrom of ice crystals, sharp as swords, came raining down on the hapless Beowolves as they moved around to avoid impalement. And Weiss watched from above, a sullen expression clouding her face as she stood on an Air Step platform. Typically, her Air Steps last for short bursts, which don't use her Aura up considerably, while in this case, she was standing on a near-solid platform, taking up an unsafe amount of what little of her Aura she had left.

Gradually, the attack was subsiding, and even with the heavy casualties that Weiss inflicted, there were still enough Beowolves to tear her apart if she stopped. Even one could certainly do the trick.

Weiss collapsed to her knees on the platform, which was now beginning to flicker out. Even if she survived the fall, if there were any Beowolves she had missed, she was through. Her thoughts came back to her, the flashbacks, the memories of a life she may no longer have in mere moments.

Breathing hard and trying to focus for as long as she possibly could, she tried her best to word out her apology to her absent teammates. She needed to do it, even if they couldn't hear it.

"Guys…I…I'm sorry…my fault…all mine…"

The platform gave out, and the shards stopped falling. Instead, a barely conscious Weiss was falling.

Time went by in slow motion. Weiss had no idea how many were left, where her teammates were, or even how high she was. All she knew was that she was falling and was going to die. And yet, a small smile graced her lips.

_'They'll be okay, at least.'_

Weiss closed her eyes and waited. Waited for the end as she fell.

She hit the ground with the crunch of snow beneath her, crushed by her momentum. Weiss let out a yelp of pain. She wasn't dead, but her body was filled with excruciating pain. She winced and moaned in pain as she tried to move, but to no avail. She heard the howls. She hadn't gotten all of them. They were coming for her. She didn't say anything. She waited for them. She waited for them to just tower over her, rip her apart, do whatever that Grimm do to the people they kill.

This was it. Weiss could see it now. The Reaper was right above her in her mind, scythe in hand. Her story was over….

Except a different scythe-wielder showed up.

A flash of black and red flashed above her, followed by the sound of gunshots and slashes in succession.

"Ruby."

Weiss' smile faded. She didn't want to be seen like this, but she was being saved. Ruby was saving _her_, of all people. She didn't feel deserving of it.

A flash of yellow flew past her, followed up with additional gunshots. Yang just joined in. Weiss was about to close her eyes again when she heard footsteps next to her and a panicked, yet familiar voice.

"Weiss, are you alright? C'mon, say something!"

She opened her eyes and turned her head. Blake was right next to her, evident worry in her face and her amber eyes holding back tears. Weiss smiled against her will, hoping Blake would calm down a little.

"Yes Blake. I…I'm alright."

Blake exhaled deeply as she wiped the tears forming in her eyes. She gave a small smile in return. "We were so worried…please don't do this again." Not wanting to talk about this ordeal just yet, Weiss tried to switch the conversation to something more pressing. "Can't you at least help me up?" Blake rolled her eyes, implying some sarcasm. "Sure."

* * *

Meanwhile, Ruby and Yang were finishing off the Beowolves that weren't killed by Weiss' attack, remnants of which were still strewn all over the clearing.

"Yang, is it me or are there a lot of these things?" Ruby yelled out to her sister in between shots. "Weiss took a lot of 'em out too. It's like going against an army or something!" was the reply. Both were fighting as hard as they could, but the Grimm just kept coming. Professor Goodwitch was right about the Forest of Forever Fall; it's infested with Grimm.

Ruby looked back to check on Blake and saw her carrying Weiss and slowly walking out of the battlefield. _'Weiss is walking, so that means she's alive. She's alive…'_ Ruby beamed and turned back to face the horde of Beowolves with renewed vigor, now that she knew her best teammate could still be by her side. She hacked and slashed her way through the hapless Beowolves, not paying attention to the gap she exposed in her line of attack. A Beowolf came in and scored a direct hit on Ruby, knocking Crescent Rose out of her hands and sending her flying into a bed of broken ice shards, where she lay, writhing in pain. Yang watched it happen at a distance.

"RUBY!"

Yang's voice pierced the night in a way no bullet or weapon of any kind could, and by itself could've frightened off the Beowolves, as they howled in pain from the stinging in their ears. Blake and Weiss looked back to see Yang running around, blasting everything to get to Ruby, lying face down in a bed of shards. Both girls were speechless, terrified of the sight. Weiss' eyes went wide with shock and dismay.

"Oh no…"


End file.
